INDEPENDENCE, Minn. – The San Diego State men's golf team finds itself in sixth place after shooting a 10-over-par 578 (292-286) on Sunday during the first two rounds of the Gopher Invitational at Windsong Farm Golf Club.
The Aztecs shaved six strokes off their collective score between the morning and afternoon sessions and sit just two shots out of the top five heading into Monday's final round on the par-71, 7,368-yard course layout.
SDSU sports two players among the individual top 20, including Puwit Anupansuebsai (Nakhon Phanom, Thailand), who finds himself in a tie for 12th at 1-over 143 on rounds of 74-69. The Aztec sophomore led the team with 11 birdies overall, including seven in the afternoon to climb 27 places on the leaderboard. Among his conversions were impressive drains on the par-3 10th and the par-4 No. 15, which ranked as the second and third-most difficult greens on Sunday, respectively.
Despite double bogeys at the par-4 third and No. 17, Anupansuebsai finished the second round with his third-best card in a Scarlet and Black uniform to remain three strokes out of the top five.
Christian Banke (Danville, Calif.) matched Anupansuebsai with a second-round 69 and sits one shot behind his SDSU teammate in a tie for 16th at 2-over 144. The Aztec sophomore displayed his consistency throughout the day, finishing with a team-high 25 pars to go with five birdies. After surviving three double bogeys en route to a first-round 75, Banke minimized the damage in the afternoon, sinking four birdies against two birdies to vault 30 places in the standings.
In addition, fellow classmate Zihao Jin (Beijing, China) occupies the 31st position after shooting a 5-over 147 (73-74). The Rancho Bernardo High alumnus was a combined 1-under par on the front nine of both rounds, but was unable to sustain the momentum after the turn in each session, suffering seven bogeys overall.
Two SDSU freshmen made their collegiate debuts on Sunday, including Leo Oyo (Tokyo, Japan), who finds himself in a tie for 40th at 6-over 148 after firing back-to-back 74s. The Aztec newcomer finished strong in both rounds, recording two birdies at the par-5, 571-yard 18th.
Rounding out the SDSU contingent was Youssef Guezzale (San Diego, Calif.), who completed the first 36 holes in a tied for 59th with a 10-over 152. The La Jolla High product was tied for the 11th spot on the strength of an opening-round 71 and looked to maintain his lofty perch with a birdie on this first hole of the afternoon. However, Guezzale was plagued by four bogeys on his next eight holes and was unable to recover, ultimately settling for an 81.
Oklahoma and Texas share the lead in the team standings after two rounds at 1-over 568, while Iowa (+6) occupies the third spot, followed by fellow Big Ten rivals Michigan State (+8) and Purdue (+8).
Individually, Arkansas' William Buhl (-6) holds a slim one-stroke advantage over Oklahoma's Blaine Hale (-5), while Purdue's Timmy Hildebrand (-4) lurks in third place, followed by Michigan State's Troy Taylor II (-3), Washington's Henry Lee (-2) and Iowa's Alex Schaake (-2).
The Gopher Invitational concludes on Monday when San Diego State tees off alongside Purdue and Michigan State, starting at 8:05 a.m. CT/6:05 a.m. PT on hole 1. A link to live scoring will be available on GoAztecs.com.
Gopher InvitationalIndependence, Minn.Day One ResultsWindsong Farm G.C.Par 71, 7,368 yards
Team Standings (Top 6 teams of 15 schools)T1. Oklahoma...284-285—569 (+1)T1. Texas...291-278—569 (+1)3. Iowa...288-286—574 (+6)T4. Purdue...282-294—576 (+8)T4. Michigan State...288-288—576 (+8)6. San Diego State...292-286—578 (+10)
Individual Leaders (Top 6 of 75 players + SDSU)1. William Buhl, Arkansas...69-67—136 (-6)2. Blaine Hale, Oklahoma...68-69—137 (-6)3. Timmy Hildebrand, Purdue...68-70—138 (-4)4. Troy Taylor II, Michigan State...70-69—139 (-3)T5. Henry Lee, Washington...70-70—140 (-2)T5. Alex Schaake, Iowa...71-69—140 (-2)---T12. Puwit Anupansuebsai, SDSU...74-69—143 (+1)T16. Christian Banke, SDSU...75-69—144 (+2)T31. Zihao Jin, SDSU...73-74—147 (+5)T40. Leo Oyo, SDSU...74-74—148 (+6)T59. Youssef Guezzale, SDSU...71-81—152 (+10)